Sunday, March 9, 2014

Avoid a knife fight if you can. Or if you can't, bring a gun, or two guns, and a few friends with guns.

Over at John Mosby's the favorite "slash vs. stab" sort of conversation
has come up, and John makes a very good point about slashes not being
particularly lethal.

John is correct, most knives, no matter how impressive the blade, are
not well suited to actual deep slashing the way a saber, scimitar, or
katana is. Of those three swords, I'm only familiar with the Japanese
sword based martial arts to comment that the targets of those slashes
are generally the femoral artery, gut, throat, brachial artery, and
head.

So what follows is my personal thoughts, based on study and practice
without ever getting into a swordfight or knife fight. In fact,
actively avoiding any sort of situation where I might get the experience
that would make me a first hand expert.

A national union that represents 300,000 low-wage hospitality workers charges in a new report that Obamacare will slam wages, cut hours, limit access to health insurance and worsen the very “income equality” President Obama says he is campaigning to fix.

Unite Here warned that due to Obamacare's much higher costs for
health insurance than what union workers currently pay, the result will
be a pay cut of up to $5 an hour. "If employers follow the incentives in
the law, they will push families onto the exchanges to buy coverage.
This will force low-wage service industry employees to spend $2.00,
$3.00 or even $5.00 an hour of their pay to buy similar coverage," said
the union in a new report.

"Some colored men came into the Crater
and there they found a fate worse than death in the charge . . . It has
been positively asserted, that White men [Union] bayoneted Blacks who
fell back into the Crater."

*Henry W. Grady
was born in Athens in 1850. His father, Major William S. Grady, bought
this house from the Taylor family in 1863 while on furlough from the
Confederate Army. Because renters were living in the house at the time,
Major Grady went back to the war without moving his family and was
later killed at the Battle of Petersburg in Virginia. Henry Grady lived
here from 1865, while he attended the University of Georgia, until 1868
when he graduated. He once referred to the house as "an old southern
home, with its lofty pillars, and its white pigeons fluttering down
through the golden air." Grady eventually became managing editor of the
Atlanta Constitution and was known as an impressive orator. In
December, 1886, he delivered his " New South"

(My mother had me
memorize the short part of his speech above to recite in front of the
UDC at the Marshall, Salem during the War, Baptist church in Virginia.)

speech at the New England
Club in New York City, whose members included prominent financial
figures J. P. Morgan and Charles Tiffany. He began his speech with a
quote from fellow Georgian, Benjamin H. Hill, "There was a South of
slavery and secession; that South is dead . . . a South of union and
freedom; that South, thank God, is living, breathing, growing every
hour," and his listeners responded with wild applause. He became a
national figure overnight, stressing in his speeches and writings the
need for reconciliation and economic development. At the age of 39,
Henry Grady died of pneumonia in Atlanta.

*******************************

On the warm morning
of 30 July 1864 an enemy artillery barrage accompanied the massive
explosion of a mine under Southern lines, followed by a subsequent
assault. The author below relates that “On the Confederate side men
quietly sleeping were hurled into eternity, no moment of waking,
reflection, or preparation, while their places were filled by the
legions of invading [Northern] soldiery.” The surviving American
soldiers repelled the enemy, though with heavy losses.

“Many
an old Confederate, who had drawn a nice bead on a Yankee in more than a
score of battles and skirmishes, could then swear to his man, and could
swear to a bayonet crimsoned when before it had served only to glitter
on dress parade. The victory was with us, but dearly had we paid for
it, for every company left more than half of its numbers among the dead
or wounded.

Among the Negroes captured and sent back to the lines on Monday
morning to assist in burying the dead was one who could scarcely speak
English. But in a conversation with the writer, in broken English, he
told me that he was born in the West Indies, came to New York on a
Spanish ship, got leave of absence to go on shore, got drunk, and when
he recovered consciousness he was well on his way to Virginia, snugly
buttoned up in a blue uniform and cooped up with a number of his race
similarly conditioned.

He
lamented his fate in piteous tones, mingling English and Spanish in due
proportion, and with the most emphatic language he declared that if he
ever got out of this scrape the American Negro could work out his
freedom without hope or expectation of further help from him.”

" A piece of disappointing news which needs to be shared with the
membership deals with the NRA advertising. Early this year I made
contact with the NRA publications, thanks to Adjutant-in-Chief Stephen
Lee Ritchie, about running an ad in the "American Rifleman Magazine".
After going back and forth with the NRA, getting approval from the GEC
to proceed, the ad, which has been in previous Confederate Veteran
magazines, was accepted and submitted for the October issue.

By the end
of August, the NRA representative contacted me to inform that the SCV
ad had been rejected. Needless to say, I was shocked. When asked why,
the reasoning was avoided by stating I would receiving a letter;
however, I was told that it was primarily due "to the Paula Dean
controversy". Apparently the NRA thought they would receive bad press
or controversy by allowing the ad. Then I was informed there would be a
meeting with the executive director next week, so the NRA
representative encouraged me to submit another ad. The advertisement
which was submitted is in this magazine (page 51). Unfortunately, this
ad too was rejected.

I felt this ad would be acceptable to them, but
again I was mistaken. As a Life Member of the NRA, I am deeply
disappointed in this organization whose belief is in your 2nd Amendment
right; however, they deny your 1st right."

I typed this directly from the article and they are the words of the Lt. CIC Barrow.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. – A judge has
questioned the viability of a prosecution against a man accused of
illegally building hundreds of untraceable rifle silencers under what
had been a secret contract with the Navy Seals.

At a
pretrial hearing Friday, Judge Leonie Brinkema suggested that there may
be classified evidence in the case that shows California race-car
mechanic Mark Landersman had legitimate — but off-the-books —
authorization to build the silencers from the Navy. If so, she said, she
doubted that prosecutors could win their case.

Captivating photographs taken by German soldier Walter Kleinfeldt who fought at the Somme aged just 16

The teenage soldier captured the reality of the front line for the German army with his Contessa camera

Kleinfeldt's photographs are seen for the first time, having been found by his son Volkmar just three years ago

They lay forgotten in a dank
cellar for almost a century. But these remarkable photos, published for
the first time, give a rare and uncensored view of the horrors of the
First World War from behind enemy lines.

They
were taken by Walter Kleinfeldt who joined a German gun crew in 1915
and fought at the Somme aged just 16. As his haunting pictures, taken
with a Contessa camera, make all too clear, life in the trenches was a
harrowing experience. The images provide an insight into the epic
machinery of war – and capture the darkest moments of battle, with
bodies strewn among the rubble.

Returning
home in 1918, Walter set up a photography shop in the town of Tubingen,
where he worked until his death in 1945. Walter’s son Volkmar
discovered the pictures three years ago.

They
are now the focus of a new BBC documentary. Director Nick Maddocks
said: ‘It is rare to find such good-quality, honest and often beautiful
photos that show us war through the eyes of the soldier, particularly
from one so young.’

Hidden Histories: WW1’s Forgotten Photographs is on BBC4 on Thursday at 9pm.

AIRCRAFT manufacturing giant Boeing
said yesterday it was too early to tell whether the missing Malaysian
Airlines aircraft might have suffered autopilot problems that hit
another of the carrier's 777 fleet in 2005.
While aviation experts described both Malaysia Airlines and the
Boeing 777 as having a solid safety record, an incident on a flight
between Perth and Kuala Lumpur led to a safety alert being issued for
777s worldwide.

In August 2005, a Malaysia Airlines 777 - the same
model aircraft that is missing feared crashed - suddenly pitched up
"violently" into a 3000-foot climb that almost forced it into an
aerodynamic stall.
A flight attendant began praying and another
dropped a tray of drinks while pilots fought the autopilot system, which
was being corrupted by a software error.

I am a
retired Delta pilot. On 10 December, 2006 I informed FAA, FBI and NWA of
the Boeing Uninterruptible Autopilot. It was used against Adam Air 574
in a manner consistent with the loss yesterday of the B777 enroute Kaula
Lampur to China.

Please advise me if Delta ALPA Safety Reps have
educated the Delta Pilot Group of the BUAP that I forced Boeing to
announce on 3 March, 2007 in response to my lawsuit filed against Boeing
and ALPA of 27 February, 2007. That lawsuit was Civil Case 3:07-cv-24
and resulted in Boeing doing the right thing in announcing the
deployment of the BUAP to be completed by March, 2009. Here is the
article of Boeing's response to my lawsuit:

New autopilot will make another 9/11 impossible

My
question to DPA and Delta ALPA Safety is on what date did Delta ensure
that all Delta pilots are aware of what Boeing has stated 7 years ago
would be installed by March, 2009.

The significance is that if any ALPA pilots are not aware of this 'feature' they cannot comply with FAR 121.533.

In
regards to yesterday's B777 hull loss expect to see the attached tax
document anchoring a chapter published demonstrating the similarities of
yesterday's loss to Adam Air 574 to Sukhoi Superjet lost in May, 2012.

Please
note that defattru email address goes to Russian Air Force, Sukhoi and
GRU. If you are not aware of who GRU is perhaps you should be.

If you are planning to attend the May PATCON, please
remit your fees ASAP, but NLT 18 April. $10 or $20 plus classes. Please
write one check for the PATCON and classes. I do not
deposit checks until the week before and I would appreciate attendees,
sponsors and class participants to remit funds now. Thank you. Please
subscribe to
this post, so you will be kept up to date.

Remembrance

Winners: Navy Cross Nguyen Van Kiet & MOH Thomas R. Norris This week’s Medal of Honor hero is one of a handful of Navy SEALs awarded the MOH in the Vietnam War. Norris snuck behind enemy lines with a South Vietnamese Navy petty officer rescued two downed pilots in 1972–when most of our resources had been pulled from the country. Interesting to note that later year, Norris was himself rescued by another SEAL Michael E. Thornton.More @ Medal of Honor Roll Call

Follow by Email

Counter

Core Creek Militia

==============================My sixth great grandfather, his wife, and five of his six children were killed in battle with the Tuscarora Indians at Core Creek, NC.

The Seven Blackbirds

==============================My third great grandfather was an Ensign in the Revolutionary War, and saved his unit's flag after being wounded at the Battle of Brandywine. He was also at Kingston (Kinston), Wilmington, Charleston, Two Sisters and Augusta. He was at the defeat at Brier Creek and also Bee Creek.

Requiem Aeternam -
Eternal Rest Grant unto Them
==============================
My second great grandfather was killed in action on May 3, 1863 at the Battle of Chancellorsville.
=============================
My great grandfather and great uncle knew all the men in the "Civil War Requiem" video as they were part of the 53rd NC which was the sole unit defending Fort Mahone. (Fort Mahone was named "Fort Damnation" by the Yankees) *Handpicked men of the 53rd (My great grandfather was one of these) made the final, night assault at Petersburg in an attempt to break Grant's line. This was against Fort Stedman which was a few miles to the slight northeast. They initially succeeded, but reinforcements drove them back. This video is made from photographs which were taken the day after the 53rd evacuated the lines the night before to begin the retreat to Appomattox. I have many more pictures taken by the same photographer, one of these shows a 14 year old boy and the other is the famous picture of the blond, handsome soldier with his musket.
===========================
*General Gordon promised the men a gold medal and 30 days leave if they accomplished their task and many years after the War my great grandfather wrote General Gordon, who was then governor of Georgia about this incident. They exchanged several letters which I have framed. See first link below.
===========================
*The Attack On Fort Stedman
============================
"His Colored Friends"
============================
Lee's Surrender
=============================
My Black NC Kinfolks
============================
Punished For Being Caught!

Great Grandfather Koonce

He was a drummer boy in the WBTS, survived the War only to die a few years later. He was caught in an ice storm on his way home, but instead of seeking shelter, continued on his horse until the end. His clothes had to be cut off and he died a few days later.